Rosette Muhoza did not set out to become the public face of Rwanda’s new wave of green pioneers. But aged just 24, Muhoza and a generation of young Rwandans have become powerful proponents of the “win-win” philosophy of sustainable innovation.

“We’ll always have waste, so it’s important to see waste as a resource,” Muhoza says. “What we’re doing is on one side promoting the circular economy, but we’re also contributing to green growth by creating green products and green jobs.”

Muhoza’s route into sustainability entrepreneurship was organic. In 2017, she and classmate David Kinzuzi simply thought it would be a nice idea for a school project to show local people how to recycle. “We thought, why can’t we just do something that will benefit the community?” she says. “If I said I had had training in the circular economy or sustainability, that would be a lie.”

Read more: Forbes